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Portland games a necessity for growth of UMaine men’s hockey

Brian Morgan (left) of the University of Maine celebrates after scoring a goal against the University of New Hampshire during a December 2015 game at the Cross Insurance Arena in Portland. UMaine is planning to play three “home” games at the venue next season.

University of Maine athletics seems to sense that Portland fans, now starved for some high-level hockey, would jump at the chance to watch the Black Bears.

UMaine hopes to capitalize on that dynamic, and southern Maine’s already solid Black Bear hockey fan base, by staging three games next season at the Cross Insurance Arena. Fans will be treated to two high-profile opponents as UMaine takes on Boston College and Notre Dame, along with Brown.

Dates for the contests have not been announced.

The knee-jerk reaction of UMaine fans from Greater Bangor might be that they are having home games taken away from them. There’s no denying that is true.

Alfond Arena regulars will still have the chance to see BC and Notre Dame at home, for one game of each two-game series. Most, understandably, won’t make the two-hour trek to Portland, especially given the team’s lackluster play of late.

Even so, season-ticket packages are designed so fans can purchase tickets for all 18 “home” games, or only the 15 contests on campus at Alfond Arena.

The reality is, a small inconvenience for “the best fans in college hockey” is a needed marketing policy for UMaine athletics.

Based on past history and future aspirations, UMaine must continue to maintain a hockey presence in Portland.

For starters, the Black Bears have enjoyed considerable success there. UMaine boasts a 12-2-5 record at the CIC (formerly the Cumberland County Civic Center) in its last 19 games spanning many years.

There doesn’t seem to be an easy explanation for that stat, other than UMaine has generally had good teams. The Black Bears went 6-7-3 last season at Alfond Arena).

The program’s more recent struggles are reflected in the team’s 0-2-2 mark in Portland since the end of the 2012-2013 season.

Another plus is that UMaine hockey has generally drawn very well in Portland, averaging 5,047 fans in four games over the last two winters. Those numbers took a hit from a snowstorm that resulted in a crowd of 3,809 at last December’s nonleague game against New Hampshire.

Those two teams played in front of 6,183 fans in the Black Bears’ only Portland game during 2014-2015.

Last season, attendance at the three Portland events averaged 4,668 fans. That compares to 3,921 for games at Alfond Arena, which was a six-percent drop from the previous season.

However, UMaine’s desire to play hockey in Portland doesn’t appear to be based on financial rewards — at least not the short-term variety. With the attendance there surpassing that of games in Orono by an average of only 747 per contest last season, the athletic department likely isn’t going to generate much profit after paying for travel, accommodations and meals, along with the CIC facility rental fee.

The final and most important reasons for having a significant presence in Portland is the future. UMaine benefits from making its athletic events accessible to southern Maine fans through a showing of good will, and probably generates some revenue from licensed Black Bear apparel and other souvenirs.

Ultimately, all these efforts most certainly are laying the groundwork to help UMaine make a push toward hosting an NCAA Regional.

Only the NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Committee knows whether UMaine’s efforts will yield a regional for Portland during the next four years.

All the Black Bears can do now to further enhance their support — whether in and around Orono, in Greater Portland, or with the NCAA selection committee — is to get back to its former winning ways.

This post was corrected to reflect that UMaine fans will have the chance to see both Boston College and Notre Dame at Alfond Arena, as each team is scheduled to play once in Orono in addition to the Portland contests.

About Pete Warner

Pete is a Bangor native who graduated from Bangor High School, Class of 1980. He earned a B.S. in Journalism (Advertising) from the University of Maine in 1986. He has been a full-time member of the Bangor Daily News Sports staff since 1984. Pete lives in Bangor with his wife of 32 years, Annia. They have two adult sons, Will and Paul. Pete is fluent in Spanish and enjoys visiting his in-laws and friends in Costa Rica. His hobbies including hunting, fishing and listening to jazz.
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Joe McLaughlin

McLaughlin (right) is a Stearns High School and University of Maine graduate who worked for three years at the Aroostook Republican and News in Caribou as a reporter and editor. He has worked on the BDN sports desk for 30 years, the last 18 as sports editor. McLaughlin and his wife, Kathy Schwigan, live in Brewer and have three adult children: Ryan, Matthew and Tess.

Pete Warner

Pete is a Bangor native who graduated from Bangor High School, Class of 1980. He earned a B.S. in Journalism (Advertising) from the University of Maine in 1986. He has been a full-time member of the Bangor Daily News Sports staff since 1984. Pete lives in Bangor with his wife of 32 years, Annia. They have two adult sons, Will and Paul. Pete is fluent in Spanish and enjoys visiting his in-laws and friends in Costa Rica. His hobbies including hunting, fishing and listening to jazz.